Submission for the Human Rights Council report on the protection of the family

The Human Rights Council initiative on ‘protection of the family’ is flawed in that it takes an unrepresentative view that elevates ‘the family’, while neglecting that families can be the site for human rights violations. For example, resolution 29/22 asserts that the family “is a strong force for social cohesion and integration, intergenerational solidarity and social development” (OP6). At the same time, there is no recognition that many families uphold power structures that oppress women, the elderly, children, persons with disabilities, queer and transgender youth, among others.